Structured Development sells South Side property

A venture of Structured Development sold a 102,000-square-foot industrial building at 1001 E. 99th St. in Cottage Grove Heights for $2.4 million to Balton, a local distributor of dry goods, restaurant supplies and similar products, according to Cook County property records. The property was once part of the Jays Foods manufacturing campus. The Structured venture was part of a group that acquired the building in 2005 for about $1.8 million, the records show. Structured and Balton executives could not be reached. Balton has moved into the building from Back of the Yards, according to Larry Goldwasser, senior director in the Chicago office of Cushman & Wakefield who brokered the deal for the company with Associate Director Colin Green. “They’ve always wanted to own,” Goldwasser said. “This was a great opportunity to buy.”

South Street Capital changes name

Chicago-based real estate investor South Street Capital changed its name to R2 Cos. The new name, taken from a mathematical formula, reflects the firm’s analytical approach, said Managing Principal Matt Garrison. The firm’s original name was from a street in West Lafayette, Ind., when it was focused on student housing. R2 has grown to own about 1.5 million square feet of mostly loft office space in Chicago and Minneapolis and is pursuing deals in other cities. R2 plans two office developments on Goose Island. “The previous name was something we came up with on the fly when we were a small company with a couple of employees,” Garrison said. “We wanted to choose a name that reflects who we are and who we want to be.”

Public relations firm to 205 W. Wacker Drive

Public relations firm Henson Consulting is moving its headquarters in April as it plans to double its staff of 25 in the next year, said founder and CEO Kathleen Henson. Henson Consulting signed a seven-year lease for 7,180 square feet in the 23-story office tower at 205 W. Wacker Drive, with an option to add about 4,000 square feet. The firm, founded in 2001, currently has about 3,800 square feet at 61 W. Hubbard St., above the Paris Club. Growth has been spurred by adding new clients, most recently Potbelly Sandwich Works and Mariano’s, Henson said. Henson recently opened an office in Cleveland and is looking to open one in Los Angeles, she said. The firm was represented in the lease by Rich and Jason Schulz, principals at the J Rich Co.